Ch.14b. A Letter From a Friend (Jerry & William)

[Bullfrog]

Jerry nods, and quietly proceeds towards the sound with his gun steadied in both hands.

Sneak 60%: 1d100

[Philulhu]

As they moved down the corridor, Jerry and William found that it was opening out into a large cavern. They realised how far they had descended as they gazed upon the columns that stretched from the floor to the ceiling over 100 feet above their heads.

Eerie light bathed the room, seemingly emanating from lichen that grew freely about the place. On the walls, interspersed with patches of lichen, intricate carvings were etched, although some the more precise details were lost to the mists of time.

A successful history or archeology roll here would be useful.

[Mr. Handy]

"I've never seen anything like this before," whispers William.

History roll (20% base skill) in the large cavern:
d%

[Bullfrog]

"It's not a drainage tunnel, I'm real certain of that." Jerry mutters, looking around the vast open chamber in astonishment; just how deep did these tunnels go, and how far could Winscott have gone into their depths?

Jerry's attention is soon caught by the carvings on the wall, however, and he moves closer to inspect them.

History 20%: 1d100

Jerry recalls something he read, once.

[Philulhu]

Some memory of similar art surfaced for Jerry. He’d seen something like this before in a newspaper or magazine somewhere. Wasn’t something like this found in some caves in Spain? Paintings from thousands of years ago, of bison and other animals.

There were striking differences in these paintings, however. Serpent motifs predominated, some of which were enormous with white crescents engraved on the forehead. The designs were repeated, possibly having symbolic meaning, accompanied by abstract and geometric designs, zigzags, and spirals.

Below some of the images appeared to be some form of script, consisting of curves, curls, and more spirals.

[Bullfrog]

"Primitive men must have lived here once, just like that cave in Spain... Altamira, I think? We ought to tell the papers all about this, once we find Winscott and get the hell out of here." Jerry speaks with hushed excitement, his attention lingering on the paintings even as he turns away from them to explore the cavern further. Those paintings could net him some legitimate money, somehow, he was sure of it, but finding Winscott would have to come first.

[Mr. Handy]

"Let's be careful, in case there are still some around," whispers William as he continues to search the chamber.

[Philulhu]

The cavern extended for almost 30 yards. The cavern was damp and there were stalactites and stalagmites, slick with water that was fed from above.

Besides the glowing lichen that gave off the sickly light by which they could see, other forms of fungi could be seen on the walls, floors and on the roof overhead. In places, the floor was covered in some sort of soft loam, where unusual looking flora had taken root.

A corridor lead off to the right but it appeared to end abruptly where the roof had caved in. Towards the far end, a tunnel lead further downwards.

[Mr. Handy]

"Looks like we have to keep going down," whispers William, "but maybe we should check out that dead end first, see how recent the cave-in was and if anyone got caught in it."

[Bullfrog]

"Just give it a quick pass with the light. Whether the tunnel collapsed a minute or a century ago, there's nothing much we can do about it without picks and shovels." Jerry responds, flicking on his headlamp to more clearly illuminate the dead end tunnel. There was certainly a chance that Winscott could have accidentally killed himself with a cave-in, but Jerry figured he would have seen some kind of sign if the cave-in was recent, and that coffee on the basement table was still hot enough to steam when he'd arrived.

[Mr. Handy]

William nods and shines his light at the dead end, giving it a once over.

[Philulhu]

Spot hidden, please.

[Bullfrog]

Spot Hidden 55%: 1d100

Jerry's got a sharp eye.

[Mr. Handy]

William sees something too.

Spot Hidden roll (64% skill) looking at the dead end:
d%

[Philulhu]

Judging by state of the rockfall, it had occurred some time before and had not been disturbed but it appeared that there might just be another cavern beyond it, although without mining equipment there would be no way to reach it.

[Mr. Handy]

"He didn't go this way," whispers William. "Down it is."

[Philulhu]

Returning back to the main cavern, Jerry and William continued downwards. The cavern narrowed to a tunnel but then expanded again slightly into a wider area with more images on the walls. The serpent motif and swirls were there, but there were also murals showing carvings of landscapes, studded with towers and other structures. Robed serpentine figures were depicted; some images showed them worshipping an enormous serpent with a crescent symbol on its forehead. Others depicted the serpent people and their cities being attacked by gigantic reptiles…

Can I have a History or a Know roll, please.

[Mr. Handy]

None of this looks familiar to William.

Know roll (70% stat) about the serpent images:
d%

[Bullfrog]

Know 60%: 1d100

There is only thing of which Jerry is sure: this is absolutely not a drainage tunnel.

[Philulhu]

Pushing on further, the cavern narrowed into a tunnel which lead down to a sharp edge. Looking down, the floor dropped away a dozen feet or more.

Somewhere in the caverns, a woman’s voice cried out.